Posted by Webmaster on Aug 27, 2010 in
General The Coos Basin Amateur Salmon Derby is approaching, and tickets are on sale now.
The derby kicks off from 5 to 8 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 10, with a barbecue and silent auction to be held for contestants and ticket holders at Menasha Forest Products Corporation, 1515 Sheridan Ave., North Bend.
The derby, which runs that Saturday and Sunday, raises money for local fisheries projects, as well as children’s fishery educational programs.
Tickets for the derby can be purchased for $20 each from Englund Marine, Y-Marina, Coos Bay Marine, The Bite’s On Bait and Tackle Shop and Butlers Pronto Print, all in Coos Bay, and North Bend Lanes in North Bend. Tickets are also available for purchase at the following boat ramps the day of the derby: Eastside Ramp in Coos Bay, California Street Ramp in North Bend, Doris Ramp, the Millicoma and Myrtle Tree Ramp and the Coos River.
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Tags: Coos Bay, fishing, salmon, Salmon Derby
Posted by Webmaster on Aug 23, 2010 in
Fishing 
Five tuna caught by one of the teams in the Oregon Tuna Classic are ready to be weighed Saturday afternoon on the dock at The Mill Casino-Hotel. The teams fished off the coast from the Charleston Marina.
The Oregon Tuna Classic reeled in thousands of pounds of tuna last weekend, producing happy fishermen along with happy food banks.
Thirty-seven teams caught 4,045 pounds of tuna last Saturday during the third leg of the tournament in Charleston, and food banks along the South Coast can also expect an additional 2,100 pounds of fish that were donated.
With great crowds and decent weather to greet the fishermen, Charleston Port Manager Jim Pex thought the tournament went well.
“Outstanding, actually. It was a pretty booming event,” he said. “There were people all up and down the boat basin.
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Tags: Charleston, fishing, offshore fishing, Oregon Tuna Classic, tournament, tuna
Posted by Webmaster on Jul 7, 2010 in
Fishing
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will host an educational event for saltwater anglers from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, July 10, near the public boat ramp in Gold Beach.
One participant will win a free four-hour bottom fishing trip donated by Five Star Charters. The trip is for one person and must be used by the end of August. To enter, you must complete the fish identification part of the open house.
The event is geared toward beginning and advanced saltwater anglers alike.
Tags: fishing, Five Star Charters, gold beach
Posted by Webmaster on Jun 3, 2010 in
Fishing The opening of the ocean Chinook salmon fishery was disappointing, but it was to be expected. Most of the commercial salmon anglers were fishing far offshore and quite deep, conditions not easily duplicated by salmon sport anglers.
That said, there were a few salmon caught and one was huge. Lee Baker, fishing slightly north of the Umpqua River mouth in 300 feet of water hooked and landed a 43-inch Chinook. The fish was rather thin and only weighed 32 pounds, but salmon that length usually weigh well over 40 pounds. He was fishing 60 feet down with a plug-cut herring. It was his only bite.
The first salmon taken was by Tyler Proof on a chartered trip with Oregon Custom Charters. Only two salmon were counted by fish checkers among the first 60 boats checked.
Winchester Bay was the most successful salmon fishing port on the South Coast on Saturday. This may be partly due to the fact that there are still a few spring Chinook entering the river. Until the fall Chinook move within range, Winchester Bay will most likely continue to offer the South Coast’s best salmon fishing. Even after that, it usually dominates the early season ocean Chinook catch.
Halibut fishing
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Tags: fishing, halibut, salmon, umpqua
Posted by Webmaster on Apr 27, 2010 in
Fishing Spring Chinook fishing on both the Rogue and Umpqua rivers is in full swing. The lower Rogue River near Elephant Rock seems to be producing the best fishing. On the Umpqua River, the numbers are better around Sawyer Rapids and upriver. I had a confirmed report of another 50-pound springer being caught near Elkton. The Umpqua may have fewer fish, but there seems to be some giants available.
With the recent warm weather, all local lakes are producing very good trout fishing with both legal-sized and trophy trout in the limits.
Tenmile Lakes are having very successful trout fishing, but some of the effort has now shifted to largemouth bass as the water temperatures have warmed.
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Tags: 50 pound, fishing, salmon, umpqua
Posted by Webmaster on Mar 30, 2010 in
Fishing,
In The News COOS BAY — Commercial and recreational fishermen are split on several options the Pacific Fishery Management Council has laid out for the upcoming salmon season. But the general consensus is — ‘Hey! At least we have a fishing season.”
Fishermen shared their views during a public hearing Monday night at the Red Lion Hotel with the council — which included representatives from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Coast Guard and National Marine Fisheries Service. The council will make a final recommendation April 15 in Portland.
The council’s announcement earlier this year that a salmon season is likely came as a welcome relief to West Coast fishermen who have struggled without the fishery for the past two years.
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Tags: fishing, regulations, salmon, season
Posted by Webmaster on Mar 9, 2010 in
Fishing PORTLAND — Wildlife officials have tried everything to keep sea lions from eating endangered salmon, dropping bombs that explode under water and firing rubber bullets and bean bags from shotguns and boats. Now they are resorting to issuing death sentences to the most chronic offenders.
A California sea lion last week became the first salmon predator to be euthanized this year under a program that has been denounced by those who say there are far greater dangers to salmon — including the series of hydroelectric dams on the Columbia.
This is the second year of the program, which is administered by wildlife officials in Oregon and Washington and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
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Tags: death, euthanized, fishing, killing, predators, sea lions
Posted by Webmaster on Mar 9, 2010 in
Fishing The Rogue River should have the best opportunities to catch a nice steelhead, as last week the reports were good from bank fishermen. Fishing near Huntley Bar and Canfield Riffle using a brown trout pattern Spin Glow produced the best bites.
The outstanding news is at least three spring Chinook were taken in the Rogue. Guide Rick Howard of Bandon landed two nice steelhead and a very good springer. Let’s hope this is a start to a very good spring Chinook season.
As the Elk and Sixes rivers fell back into shape, both produced some good, bright winter steelhead.
Reports from the South Fork of the Coos River were not as good, as the steelhead fishing has slowed and the numbers of spawned-out fish has increased.
The Coquille River is falling back into shape after the recent rains, and fish were being picked up on the North Fork. Fishermen also reported a larger number of spawned-out fish that they released. Fishing on Tenmile and Elk creeks has slowed as well.
The Chetco River in Brookings is also falling back into shape, and the lower river from Icebox downstream to the Social Security Bar produced the best bite.
As I reported in last week’s article, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is now stocking legal-sized trout in most of our local lakes gearing up for spring break. Fishermen at Empire Lakes were very pleased with their catches last week, and Empire Lakes offers great family-friendly fishing.
The ODFW reported that their sampling of Garrison Lake in Port Orford showed good numbers of cutthroat trout and rainbow trout in the lake. As water temperatures start to rise, these trout should be on the bite.
Crabbing reports from the Charleston area show that many boaters still are getting limits of Dungeness crabs and the quality has been excellent. Crabbing in Bandon has slowed because of high, fresh water. A word of caution — recently, a large snag has lodged itself at Weber’s Pier and crabbers have been getting their crab rings hung up on it.
The Bay Area Sportsman’s Association will be holding its 23rd Annual Sportsman’s Banquet at the Bay Area Boys and Girls Club tonight at 5:30 p.m. The money raised from this event is used to support the Boys and Girls Club, local athletic teams and many of our STEP programs. They still have a few tickets available and you can contact Mike Helfrich at 541-297-0654 for more information.
The San Francisco Pier 39 sea lions that showed up in great numbers at the Sea Lion Caves in Oregon last fall have started to disappear. The sea lion mystery began four months ago when volunteers counted more than 1,700 of them at Pier 39 and by Thanksgiving, fewer than two dozen remained. We can only hope their trip south is a non-stop one and they won’t stop to feast on our springers.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Department has implemented a trip plan form for all their outdoorsmen. The form is to be filled out and left with a responsible person prior to an outdoor excursion. The trip plan form includes the purpose of the trip, the general area, landmarks, the starting time of your trip and the time you’re expected to return. In the event that you don’t return from your trip as stated on the form, it will be given to law enforcement and search and rescue organizers. This trip plan form is available on the Douglas County Sheriff’s Web site and can be used by anyone. I highly suggest using the form to all outdoorsmen as your life may depend on it.
Good luck fishing and hunting.
Tags: Chinook, elk, fishing, gold beach, Rogue River, salmon, Sixes
Posted by Webmaster on Jan 29, 2010 in
General With many steelheaders switching from boats to bank fishing, these plunkers are doing very well. The county boat ramp in Coquille had a lot of activity and many nice steelhead were caught. Rising river levels offer a great opportunity to fish from the banks using stealthy methods, as many of these steelhead travel the edges to get into some calmer waters.
The North Fork Coquille River clears fairly fast, and after the recent rains anglers reported catching some nice steelhead early in the week. The South Fork Coquille has been high and muddy and kept most fishermen over on the North Fork. LaVerne Park also reported some good steelhead fishing the past few days.
Some of the best steelheading has taken place on the South Fork Coos River and the West and East forks of the Millicoma River. The fish seem to really turn on as the rivers peak and start to drop down. The West Fork Millicoma is the first river to clear, followed by the East Fork. The South Fork Coos takes a little bit more time to clear.
Bottom bouncing eggs, corkies or sand shrimp have been the most effective methods for steelhead anglers. A technique that has worked in the past is fishing a Marabou jig suspended under a bobber. To increase your opportunity, break off a small piece of sand shrimp and put it on a hook. Fishing with a bobber will take some practice, but when you master this technique, it can be quite effective.
Winter steelhead fishing has been good on Tenmile Creek, and because this creek is controlled by Tenmile Lakes, it seldom gets too high or muddy to fish. There is a boat launch at Spinreel Campground along with good bank access. This is a safe and gentle place to take the kids for their first steelhead experience.
During last weekend’s Eel/Tenmile STEP Steelhead Derby, first place for the most steelhead caught went to Jamie Parker-Fitting. She caught three steelhead, which were the largest by weight. Jamie won a Shimano reel and Lamiglas rod.
Second place went to Doug Jones for the largest fish weighing 8.84 pounds. Doug won an Abu Garcia reel and Lamiglas rod. Doug also won third place for the second highest amount of fish taken by weight and won a Shimano spinning reel and Lamiglas rod. There were 48 contestants, and they caught 23 hatchery steelhead and released six native fish.
River flows on the lower Rogue River were good last week, and plunkers did well catching steelhead from Quosatana Creek Campground to the Old Mill Site. A local guide, while fishing just above tide water on Saturday, reported that they hooked seven steelhead, landed four and kept two. Other fishermen anchored in slots fishing Wiggle Wart plugs and did very well.
Water levels on the Sixes and Elk rivers were high, but they are starting to clear and should be fishable in the next few days.
In last week’s report, I talked about the Free Fishing for Kids Program that has been spearheaded by Earl Rankin of Bandon along with Tony Roszkowski of the Port O’ Call and Tony’s Crab Shack in Bandon. They want to thank the readers for their calls, donations and support for this program. To learn more about this story go to www.oregonoutdoorsradio.com and you will find it under “Breaking News.”
Just a reminder that the Coos County Friends of The NRA will hold their annual dinner and auction fundraiser at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 6, at the Coquille Community Building. Last year they were sold out and expect the same this year. Therefore, they only will sell 350 tickets and no tickets will be sold at the door. At the time I wrote this article, only a few tickets were left.
For more information about tickets, sponsorships, donations or to assist the committee, please call Brad Haga at (541) 294-3677, Al Lovie at (541) 290-2202 or Don Leatherwood at (541) 347-9719. Remember, this fundraiser will be a major contributor to the new Tioga Sports Park Shooting Range. I hope to see many of you there.
Good luck fishing and hunting.
Tags: banks, coquille, fishing, steelhead
Posted by Ocean Harvester on Oct 23, 2009 in
Fishing,
General,
Ocean Harvest
Record Year Tuna Fishing on the Harvester
This was the best year ever for the Harvester Albacore fishing. We landed 4600 fish in 36 days on the ocean averaging 16lbs each for nearly 47,000 lbs. Pretty incredible for our small boat since last year we only landed 1600 fish for the whole season. What made the difference?
The Weather!
 Short Video of Jumper School |
 Video: Landing Two Albacore |
This July was the clear and calm nearly all month. It was an amazing month with very little wind so it was no problem fishing so we got a lot more days on the Ocean than we did last year and we found the tuna big time. As you get later into the season you have to change your strategy to find the tuna. In the early part of the Summer, when the tuna are moving in they follow the warm currents so you can have a pretty good idea where they will be. They’re here in the summer to put on weight so early on they’re always biting so its just a matter of finding the warm waters and trolling a pattern through it.
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Tags: albacore, commercial, fishing, jumper schools, ocean, Tuna Fishing, video
